Thursday, April 28, 2011

For Lent, I gave up beef. Now, I wouldn’t say that I necessarily have a beef-eating problem, but there was a period right before Ash Wednesday when I found myself eating beef at least twice a day. My body urged me to take a break, and so I did.

Actually, after a while I didn’t miss it that much—there are plenty of other satisfying foods to eat in the world. That said, a reader over on my Facebook page asked for a beef enchilada recipe. Her request took root and grew throughout my abstention, and as soon as Easter arrived I decided to make beef enchiladas my first order of business.

I have to admit that I seldom order beef enchiladas when I eat Tex-Mex. Nope, I’m more a cheese enchilada or sour-cream enchilada gal. I was trying to remember the last time I even ate beef enchiladas, and the best I could deduce was that it was several years ago when a couple was added to a combination platter.

In my recollection, however, it was a fine specimen of the enchilada genre. The tortillas were drowning in a soulful and smooth chili gravy, while the ground beef filling was peppery and bright. I mixed each bite with some beans and rice, and the iceberg lettuce garnish added a cooling contrast to the richness of the beef. Yep, it was an excellent Tex-Mex meal.
My aim was to try and recreate this experience in my own kitchen. While ancho chiles are normally the base of Tex-Mex sauces, I decided to use pasilla chiles, which are similar in flavor but with more of a bittersweet tone. I also added chipotle chiles, for their smoky heat.

For the filling, I opted to go with ground beef. Now, there are some who prefer shredded beef as a filling, but when I was young I suffered through a plate of enchiladas with shreds so tough they made my mouth sore. I’ve avoided this type of enchilada ever since. I kept my filling simple by flavoring the ground beef with only onion, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper. A spoonful of the chili gravy stirred into the meat made it complete.

The enchiladas came together in no time, and were extremely satisfying. And yes, these beef enchiladas were not only a welcome return to eating beef, but I’m certain they’ll be a welcome part of my Tex-Mex cooking rotation, as well. They made me smile and hopefully they'll make you smile, too.

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As an addendum, I am thrilled that Homesick Texan is a finalist in the Best Regional Cuisine category for the second annual Saveur Best Food Blog Awards, as I see it as recognition that Texan cuisine is indeed worthy of respect and praise. If you care to vote, please visit Saveur. Thank you!

Method:
In a dry skillet heated on high, toast the pasilla and chipotle chiles on each side for about 10 seconds or just until they start to puff. Fill the skillet with enough water to cover chiles. Leave the heat on until water begins to boil and then turn off the heat and let the chiles soak until soft, about 30 minutes. Once hydrated, discard the soaking water and rinse the chiles. Place in a blender.

In a large pot or Dutch oven, in heat up the vegetable oil and while occasionally stirring cook the onions until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 30 more seconds. Place cooked onion and garlic into the blender, along with the cumin, oregano, allspice and the broth. Blend until smooth.

In a pot, heat the 2 tablespoons of oil on low heat, whisking in the flour until well incorporated. Pour in the sauce and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add salt and black pepper to taste and adjust other seasonings as needed.

Meanwhile, in a skillet on medium heat (I use the same one that I used for the onions and garlic) add the ground beef, half of the diced onions and garlic. While stirring occasionally, cook the meat until browned, about 10 minutes. (If you like, you can drain the extra fat once the meet is browned.) Stir in the cumin and cook for 2 more minutes. Taste and add salt and black pepper to taste and adjust seasonings. Stir into the meat 1/4 cup of the chili gravy.

To make the enchiladas, first preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a large baking dish. In a skillet, heat up the lard or oil on medium-low heat. One at a time, heat up the tortillas in the hot oil until soft and pliant. Lay each tortilla on a plate or clean cooking surface and add about 2 tablespoons of beef and some of the cheese. Roll the tortilla and place in greased baking dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas. Pour sauce over enchiladas and top with remaining grated cheese and diced onions. Bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is lightly browned and bubbling.

When we make enchiladas, my dad insists that we dip the tortillas in simmering broth to soften them up enough for rolling. He always says if it doesn't hurt, the broth isn't hot enough. It's nice to see a recipe that looks relatively painless, literally.

I love beef enchiladas. While cheese enchiladas certainly have their place-- their glorious place -- I like to eat something a bit more sustaining sometimes. I recently made some beef enchiladas in almost exactly this manner, but with premade chile powder (I know, I know). I thought they came out great, but they were missing something. A more complex chili sauce might just have been that something. Thank you again, Ms. Fain, for your culinary inspiration.

I can't wait to try this recipe ... just reading it makes my mouth water! My mother makes my very favorite beef enchiladas, but I've found that the beef enchiladas at Alicia's in Alpine are the next-best thing.

I'm wondering what you think about *not* dipping the tortillas in oil before filling. (I occasionally stray into thoughts about fat and calories.) Is the dip in warm oil to add flavor or to make the enchilada more flexible for rolling? I sometimes make an enchilada casserole by layering (cold) tortillas with filling.

Muffin Tin--The oil both softens the tortillas and keeps them from getting too soggy under the sauce. But I often just wrap them in foil and bake them for 15 minutes or until they're soft (you can do this in a microwave, too, but with paper towels and in less time, obviously). No fat that way!

Had an interesting variation of beef enchiladas last week in downtown Houston...Hacienda Guadalajara I think...the beef enchiladas were covered in a creamy jalapeno sauce. I'd never seen that before and they were easily some of the best beef enchiladas I've ever had.

Looks delicious! I add a step which "I" feel is necessary, but obviously YMMV - I heat the tortillas in oil as you do, stacking them as I go. Then I dip each into the enchilada sauce before filling and rolling. IMO it keeps the tortillas from drying out and adds extra flavor through the whole dish. It also makes for a complete "up to your wrists" mess - but that's part of the fun.

Awesome recipe! This is by far the best Chili Gravy recipe I've ever found. I subbed this chili gravy for the one in your cheese enchiladas. It made restaurant quality cheese enchiladas! I couldn't find dried pasilla peppers, so I used 2 chipotle peppers and 4 ancho peppers. Amazing! Thank you so much for sharing!

Made these today with a slight variation because of what I had on hand: -Used fresh pasilla peppers, fresh oregano and canned chipotles -Used tapioca flour rather than regular flour (because I was out) -Made my own tortillas (because I only had 5 tortillas on hand so I had to make the rest) -Ground my own chuck roast because I didn't have preground beef already. These turned out fabulous! For somebody who doesn't like beef much, these were great!

These look delicious, I really want to make them for my in-laws (who are French) who dont yet know tex-mex, but I don't have a blender. Is it still possible to make and use the gravy without running it through the blender ?

We are Texans and love Tex Mex. I live out in the country far away from any restaurants, so I needed to learn how to cook Tex Mex myself. these were DELICIOUS. My husband said they were the best enchiladas he ever tasted!

I have lived in Tex-Mex heaven ever since I first discovered your blog and the original chili gravy recipe. I am never without some in the fridge! I will certainly add this recipe to my growing collection, because I love chipotle anything.

For we die-hard fans of chili gravy, I have to know: can it be canned safely? I know most canners say not to can anything with oil in it, but I have asked this question on a canner's website and never gotten an answer, although she mentioned that some people ARE canning chili gravy. She made no further mention of it, and she hasn't canned any. I am just too afraid to try it without an expert's opinion. I'd love to be able to can this in appropriate sized jars for Hubs and me, and to sometimes, uh, occasionally, er, rarely....give one away. :-)

Being a native Texan, Cheese enchiladas (lots of raw onion in the filling) slathered with chili gravy are a true comfort food. I altered your dish slightly, adding a 1/2 pound of browned ground beef to the gravy and substituting the beef filling with cheese and onions. It was wonderful! Thanks.

This sauce is amazing! First time making chili sauce, or enchiladas for that matter. A friend of mine, born and raised in Texas, insisted I use this recipe. I am a wuss when it comes to hot spice and I found this dish perfect and such perfect flavor! Thank you, and the proportions were perfect, though I only made 8 enchiladas, as I bought a 10-pack of tortillas and in learning how to soak/roll for the first time, I broke two :) Got the hang of it eventually - a learning experience for those of us who don't use corn tortillas often!

I have made this sauce 4 times now. It is one of my boyfriend's favorite things that I make. However, each time I make it, I notice a bitter taste. To avoid it, I have: tried both pasillas and anchos and not found a difference; experimented with the time I toast the chilis (was worried I was burning them) and went from rinsing them briefly to really, really rinsing each one inside and out. I'm using good quality chilis, too. Can you think of what the problem is? The way I've been making it, the sauce is good, not great. I end up doubling the spices and adding the zest and juice of 2 limes to mask the bitterness. Usually, the next day it is pretty good.

In the old days, enchiladas were topped with real chili, but most Mexican restaurants have stopped offering Chili, and have moved on to the chili gravy. I find that using Masa instead of flour cuts down on the bitter after taste of some of the chiles